HASTINGS, Mich. — The Hastings football program has turned into one of the best in the state over the last two seasons.
"First week of practice, the first couple of days were very intense," Hastings head coach James Murphy said. "We had a lot of fun. I think on Friday nights we'll have a group of kids who will be ready to bring it."
The Saxons have won back-to-back Interstate 8 conference titles. The last time Hastings won two consecutive conference championships was in 1978-79.
"We've got a lot of size this year," Hastings senior running back Lanny Teunessen said. "Our line is quite a bit bigger than what it was last year and quite a bit bigger than it has been in a long time. We're going to have a lot of energy. Our team is really bonding so far this year. They are bonding good. We should play pretty good."
Even with the hot stretch Hastings is on, the Saxons know what they've accomplished the last two seasons is not a guarantee for how the team performs in 2022.
"Pretty high expectations," Hastings senior fullback Robby Slaughter said. "We were pretty good last year. We'll be pretty big this year. I think we'll be good again."
The Saxons must replace 16 seniors who had big responsibilities on the team from last season.
The Hastings football program is certainly confident heading into 2022, and a lot of that confidence comes from the fact they'll have one of the biggest Saxon teams in recent history.
"We're going to see a lot of big dudes," Hastings senior cornerback Layton Eastman said. "We've got big linemen this year and some big running backs coming back from last year so it's going to be pretty good. A lot of enthusiasm this year."
Hastings opens up the 2022 season against Middleville on August 26.
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